Unbreakable Vow
by noble-obsessions
Summary: A/U:Alex and Justin are forced into a fixed marriage. Justin soon falls for her but Alex rejects him. He meets Mitchie at a local cafe and dates her. Meanwhile, Alex finds a new friend in Mitchie since they are both college freshmen. Jalex to Mitchie/Alex
1. Chapter 1

**SUMMER**

Justin Henrie, an 18 year old wizard parked his hot new Challenger in front of the Russo household. It's another one of those monthly family-family get together now that they've rarely seen each other. Everyone had been waiting for him since he went to Columbia to fix his admission. He was going to take up Computer Engineering with the hopes of building robots to beat in chess. He went inside and there he found his parents chatting with the Russo parents. The Henries and the Russos have been family friends for a long time now since their dads are best of friends back in WizTech. He sits besides his best friend Alex, who was going to Parsons to pursue her love for arts this coming year.

"Hey Alex," he said as he took the remote control from the petite brunette.

"Hey- what the- Justin!" She shrieked as she tried to take it from Justin. Justin throws the remote to Max and licks it.

"Ew gross Max," Justin exclaimed.

"Who said he was gonna run away with it you moron?" Alex exclaims as she hit Justin in the arm. "You're cleaning that up." She stood up and took some Reese's from the fridge.

"Everybody, dinner's ready!" Theresa announces. There were several delicious food served like roasted chicken, pasta, salad, buttered seafood and some crème brulee. The 2 families ate and chit chatted about their recent stories.

Once they finished and cleaned up, they gathered at the living room. Alex sat between Justin and Max as their parents took a seat together, seriousness evident in their faces.

"Okay...the reason we're all here is that we have important news to tell you Alex and Justin," Jerry says as he looks at the two.

"And we've been discussing this since you were born," Justin's mom, Carol, tells them. "It's final."

"You guys are making me nervous," Alex replies suddenly feeling nerves as she sat up straight.

"Okay... Back then, we've decided," Jerry paused. "We've decided that we're fixing you into an arranged marriage in order to maintain wizardry purity in your bloodline."

"WHAT?!" Both Justin and Alex exclaim. Thoughts running in their head like mad.

"You can't make me!" Alex screams as she stood up. "You can't tell me who to marry!"

"Yeah and we've been friends for so long, it would be damn awkward!" Justin added to his parents, his eyebrows scrunched up.

"This is final. No buts whatsoever. This is so that you both will be assured of a good life!" Justin's dad, Lorenzo declares.

"Mom! I can't believe you agreed to this!" Alex accused her mom, her face clearly showing frustration, anger, sadness and shock all at the same time.

"Sweeties, it is for your own good. We only want what's best for you!" Theresa replied in a "I'm-sorry-but-we-had-to-do-this" kind of voice.

"Best for me? Are you kidding me? What's best for me is making my own decisions and learning from them when I make mistakes. Not this!" She yelled, tears building up. Handling things like this is too much for an 18-year old girl to take.

"She's right. And... What about Max?" Justin questioned, the thought of being with Alex kinda weirds him out.

"We're still looking for his partner. This wizarding arranged marriage have been a tradition and yes I broke that tradition," Jerry added as Alex was about to retort how he married a mortal. "Not that I'm complaining but can you really stand on your own? Alex you can't even feed your pet!"

"Oh wait so I'm getting a girl soon?" Max butted in. Jerry nods his head. "Sweet! I don't have to go looking for one! Laterssss!" He said and dashed out of the room. Alex rolled his eyes at his annoying brother's stupidity.

"Are you calling me stupid?" Alex questioned, a mixture of emotion flowing through her. She looks at Justin for a moment.

Jerry answers, "no honey, we're just saying that this is what's for the best of you."

"Justin!? Why aren't you fighting back?"Alex asked in a strong and disappointed voice but an emotionless face as her eyes stare through him.

"No use Alex. They never even let me do my own decisions," he said in a soft voice as he shook his head.

"Now you know that's not true!" Carol buts in.

"It is! I would've gone to MIT but oh no, Columbia is in New York!" Justin mocked his parents. "I'm getting out of here!" He starts to go out but Jerry stops him.

"Wait! The vow!"

"I'm not taking any damn vows. You can't make me," Alex firmly replied, shooting daggers at the old people.

"You are and if you're not, I can assure you of no powers during the competition!" Jerry reprimands.

"DAD! That's unfair!" Alex yelled in tears now. Justin goes over to her and pats her back. "You had your way, why can't I have mine?!"

"Because I said so!" Jerry exclaims.

Alex starts crying hysterically. She was single but that doesn't mean guys don't like her. She just isn't ready for any commitment. She goes to her room and locks herself up for the night. Her parents left her alone so she could get this sunk in her system. Jerry decided to just initiate the vow the next day which the Henries agreed with. The Henries went home with an expressionless Justin.

* * *

The next day, the Henries returned to perform the unbreakable vow. It is unbreakable because if the participant breaks the vow, he or she would either lose his/her powers (if he/she won the wizard competition) or he/she would be dismembered in their wizarding world (if he/she didn't win the wizard competition.) Alex descends the stairs with hatred in her face as her parents wait for her. She ignores her mother's sweetness to get her in the mood that she snapped at her for being too chatty too early in the morning.

"Alex, do not talk back to your mother like that!" Jerry sternly reprimanded her daughter who just rolled her eyes. Her father eyes her with great annoyance.

"Hands up," Lorenzo interrupts before the tensions grows even more. Knowing that this is a losing battle, Alex lets her hand be taken by Jerry and linked to Justin's own.

Their hands took in a form of a shake hand as Lorenzo takes out his wand and point it at the center of their connected hands.

_"These hands, these bodies, these souls, bond them in forever's vow. A union in commitment for the promise of a bright tomorrow. An unbreakable vow between Alexandra Marie Russo and Justin David Henrie, witch and wizard alike, I hereby declare. Today, tomorrow and forever they will stay true, a life made in promise they will share."_ And a snake like glow wrapped their hands signifying the seal of the vow. Alex once again broke down in tears and Justin hugged her.

"The wedding will commence after your graduation, which is in four years," Jerry spoke up.

"And it wouldn't matter if you or Max won," Theresa added. "Because I know you will have an assured life Alex."

Alex whimpered more into Justin's shirt. She wasn't complaining about being paired up with him. He's an amazing guy. He's smart, good looking, dorky and nice. A cute geek as one may say but the idea of being forced into something like this is something she can't comprehend yet. She broke off the hug and once again locked herself in her room.

* * *

Three weeks passed and she still isn't talking to her parents. Alex only talked to Max if she needed something like helping her out with chores and stuff. Justin tried to cheer her up and gave her the pros even though he himself has no idea if this arranged marriage is gonna work out for them. Her friends especially Harper tried to make her happy and bonded more with her before they went their own ways for college.

Alex and Harper were packing Alex's stuff for when she moves to their apartment near their colleges. She and Justin will be living together so that they can try to work it out. They aren't anything officially and Justin felt like he didn't need to ask what they were because in the end, he's ending up with her.

"I'm gonna miss you Alex," Harper sighed as she tok more of Alex's clothes from her closet.

"I'm gonna miss you too Harper," she smiled sadly as Harper gave her a hug. "But we're like two hours away, so maybe we can visit like during weekends..."

"Yeah I know...But still. It feels weird being somewhere without my bestfriend," Harper replied as she pulled away. "Pinky swear you won't find another bestfriend?" She pouted and held out her pinky.

"Pinky swear," Alex connected her pinky to Harper's. The two share a smile before being interrupted by Justin's knock.

"Hey Alex we're going," he said as he smiled at the two girls and then left. Alex and Justin are going to move a couple of their stuff to their apartment that day.

The 3 got in Justin's car and they dropped Harper off at her house. Their apartment is like 2 hours away from home via car and about 30 minutes via the subway.

* * *

Mauve and mocha colors colored the wall, a creamy carpet covered the floor and the white light emitted a different kind of glow as they switched it on. The 2 bedroom apartment suited the two well. They decided it's still best if they got their own rooms. It had 2 rooms, 2 bathrooms, a dining room, a kitchen, a living room and a small back yard. It came with a serious tag price but hey, there was cable TV and fast internet connection and it was situated right near the district area where they can easily get what they need. They decided to not stay in an on-campus dorm so they can try to make their status work.

Justin, being the gentleman one, gave Alex the room with the bathroom. She walked up the mahogany stairs and to her new room. It was fairly sized and there was a mini walk-in closet so she was happy with that. There was a queen sized bed in the middle and the door to the bathroom was a few feet away from it. She figured that this was the master's bedroom. Meanwhile, Justin unloaded his things and went in his room, just beside Alex's and started to organize some of his properties in the drawers. His room was smaller but he didn't complain. He doesn't have a lot of things anyway.

As they finished fixing most of their stuff, it was nearly six o'clock so they decided to grab something at the local cafe they saw on the way.

* * *

_**A/N: New stuff. RnR pls? DL4SG.**_


	2. Chapter 2

It's been a month since they moved to their apartment that summer. They occasionally went home or went out. They're staying there to get used to the place and try to be independent – chore wise. Every night they would either eat while watching something on the TV with their feet propped up in the table or he'd go over her home works just to make sure she's doing well or they're listening to music as they minded their own businesses.

It wasn't until now that Justin plucked up the courage to ask Alex out.

It was around 5 in the afternoon. Alex went out to grab some stuff at the grocery for their food supplied. Justin took a long shower, and then proceeded to dry himself. He put on a dark blue polo shirt and a white and gray plaid shorts finished off with some Vans slip ons. Just as he finished putting wax in his hair did he hear the sound his car. His heart started to race like he knew something good was about to happen, he also hoped for something good as well.

Alex borrowed the car for the day as she went to the store seeing as she didn't have one. She went out of the car and popped the trunk open, and took the groceries. Justin went out of his room and down the stairs to peek as Alex came in through the door. He heard a couple of drawers thudding lightly and then he went downstairs after a couple of minutes. As he descended, he saw Alex going over the things inside their pantry. She was wearing a white mini short, a grayish top and one of those thin and long black vests and some boots. Her hair was pinned up in a messy pony tail.

Justin walked towards her, gathering every inch of his courage to ask her out. After all, he's been secretly crushing on her for 15 years.

"Ehem," he said softly as he bit his lip. Alex jumped, facing him as she clutched her chest. Shock evident in her nature.

"Oh gosh Justin!" She exclaimed. "Don't fricken do that again! You're lucky I don't have my wand now or else..." She once more turned to the pantry.

"Sorry about that..." Justin said as he looked to his feet.

"Yeah. So where are you going?" Alex said as she went towards the counter's stool and sat on it.

"I was actually uhm.. I was actually going to uh..ask you out. You know... Umm.. Yeah if maybe you wanted to grab some dinner with me tonight... Like something fancy," Justin mumbled. Alex stared ather for a minute. "...Or maybe just some In-N-Out or McDonalds. Anything."

Alex's eyes sparkled as a smile crept on her face. She tilted her head sideway before saying "Sure anything's alright," and heading upstairs to get changed.

She descended the staircase wearing some skinny jeans, a big dark green loose top with a huge black and silver belt around it, hugging her figure. She put on some make up and had half her hair tied up and the other half loosely left. The atmosphere around them suddenly turned a bit warm to her pleasing.

Justin smiled at her and took her hand as he pecked her cheek. He felt a bit shy but nevertheless shrugged it off. He led her to the door and to the car being all gentlemanly.

The drive was a quiet. Quiet in an awkward way. Months ago they would've talked nonstop before they knew they we're going to be fixed. They would probably be teaming up against Max or bantering on which band sound the awesomest. But now, it was just an awkward ceasing of sound.

"So I'm thinking..."Justin started, just to break the ice. "Maybe we can give this a shot... you know. At least we tried."

"Yeah but you know that's not it," Alex replied, looking out the window. "In the end, it's gonna be us. Even if we tried with other people."

"Yeah I get you. But, let's say I..." He paused. Alex turns to look at him, urging him to continue as he looked straight ahead. He gulped. "Let's say I've had this... this thing for you. For some time now..."

Alex feels a shockwave of literal shock. She didn't expect this. It's felt so overwhelming and a bit more awkward. "What do you mean?" She asked, her brows creasing.

He pulled up in this fancy restaurant and shut the engine off. He looked at her and smiled. "Maybe we can go talk while we eat." He went out and then went to her side and opened the door for her. They were at this brick structure with a large curvy sign that said the name of the restaurant. As they went inside, the place was of a dark blue and white atmosphere, large fancy curtains are tied up perfectly as guests chattered incessantly with wine glasses in hand. There was a bar at one side and a small stage where a pianist was playing some good ol' Martina McBride. There were small lamps hung at the sides and fake plants well placed in some corners.

The maître'd welcomed them as Justin asked for his reservation. They were led upstairs in a corner on a 2-seater table with overlapping sky blue and white tablecloth and a tulip centrepiece. Their waiter handed them the menu and left them for a bit.

"How did you know I was going to say yes?" Alex spoke up as she subtly wondered how he had a reservation.

"Well, I didn't. I figured I could always erase my reservation the way I made them," he replied and winked at her and skimmed the menu in his hand.

Her jaw dropped a bit, "are you talking about?..." She stopped saying the word 'magic.' "You know..."

"Yeah, swish," he said, not even looking at her as he waved her hand like it was his wand.

They ordered some fancy dinner and ate.

"So what were you saying earlier? In the car?..." Alex remembered as she picked on her pasta.

"Oh uhm that," Justin said, wiping his mouth a bit. "Well," he looked at his food, his heart beating fast like the girl she likes liked him back. "Well I uh... I've been into you for like... I don't know... Since we're like 7, I guess...So..." He shrugged with his shoulders, looked at his plate as his face started to redden.

Alex smiled and giggled. "What?" Justin asked, his face still red. "Don't make fun of me."

"I'm not," Alex smiled. "I think it's cute," and she touched his hand. "It's okay. Don't sweat about it."

"It's not cute. It's kinda creepy if you ask me," Justin said as his blushing subsided.

"Well I think it is."

They finished eating and Justin took care of the bill and they headed to the movies. They watched some romantic comedy and Justin made his small moves like putting an arm around Alex as Alex leaned her head into his shoulder. They went home after, smiles etched on their face.

_Maybe this isn't so bad after all. Maybe this could actually work. _Alex thought.

As they arrived home, everything went back to the way they were. They talked about random stuff before they headed to bed.

"Goodnight Justin," Alex said, smiling at him before she stopped in her tracks towards her bedroom. "I had a great time. Thank you." And she kissed him in his cheek. He smiled back at him as he said good night as well.

Alex stopped in her tracks again and went back to Justin. "You know what? I might as well do this," And Alex's lips met Justin's for a bit. She pulled back. "You know, I mean if we're already fixed, we're both going to kiss anyway." And she went back to making her way to her room, leaving Justin with a goofy smile on his face.

Morning came and Alex heard some scrambling downstairs. She got up from bed and cleaned her face and brushed her teeth before heading down. She saw Justin behind the stove, trying to make bacons. Keyword being trying. The smoke piled up the kitchen, there was a big fire leaning over the pan he was trying to fry in and the exhaust fan didn't help much. She hurried beside him in fear of burning down the apartment.

"What the heck Justin? Are you trying to burn the apartment down?" She exclaimed, taking the tongs out of Justin's hand and lowering the fire. Once Alex was able to fix the bacon, she held up the burnt bacon to Justin's face who was sitting in the counter stool.

"Sorry, I was just trying to make breakfast for us," he said, wiping his face as he sent her an apologetic look.

"Yeah, you couldn't have toasted some bread instead?" She shook her head. "You can always wake me up for breakfast you know."

"Yeah I was going to surprise you but not like this," he replied.

"Thanks, that's very thoughtful of you," Alex said as she made her way towards the pantry and retrieved some eggs for her to fry.

"Hey um..." Justin said as he stood up, taking some juice out of the refrigerator.

"Yeah?" Alex asked as she waited for the sunny side up to cook well.

"What are... what are we now?" He asked in a low voice, silently half-praying she didn't hear him.

"Well we're going to end up together anyway, so why not?" She replied casually. Justin's smile went wide. "But, I have a few condition-like proposals."

"Umm what?"

"Can we be not that exclusive? I mean, I think we should also see other people before we both get married. You know, have a lot of experience... You get what I'm trying to say here?" Alex said, facing him with a face full of emotion.

Justin bit the side of his cheek, "Uhm... Yeah I do. But that may be hard on my part... I mean... You know I already like you... I won't take offense if you don't like me back... I can't force you to do that."

"Thank you Justin," She smiled brightly at him as she put the eggs on a plate. "You want a new set of bacon to go with these?" She asked, smiling at him in a joking way.

"If you're serious, go ahead. I don't really like burnt stuff," he said, laughing at his mishap. Alex nodded and took out some more bacon to make non-burnt ones. Justin walked towards her as she opened the stove and waited for it to heat up a bit. He put an arm around her waist which sort of surprised Alex. "Thanks for the bacon," he whispered in her ear. "Girlfriend." They both smiled.

* * *

_**A/N: Just a short chap that's kinda important. Sorry for all the late updates. I am a lazy encoder.**_


End file.
